Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero announced earlier in the day that his country planned to sponsor the new Middle East initiative together with France and Italy. “We cannot remain passive in the face of the horror that continues to unfold before our eyes,” he said.
Foreign Minister Tzipy Livni said in response to the announcement that she told her Spanish counterpart that every new initiative must be coordinated with the Israeli government.
PA spokesman Nabil Rudineh announced Thursday evening that the terrorist-led government welcomed the initiative to bring international forces to the region.
Zapatero told reporters at a news conference following his meeting with French President Jacques Chirac in the town of Girona, near the Spanish border with France, that peace in the Middle East “means to a large extent peace on the international scene.”
Chirac agreed, saying that all three countries “have the same vision of problems and concerns over the Middle East, and particularly Palestine.” He added that the three nations “have the sensitivity, the same interests and the same morals,” which might be useful in “working out a solution to the Palestinian problem.”
Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi told reporters in Rome that his country fully supported the initiative. “I think the European countries present in the area have an obligation to look for a way to get out of this situation,” he said.
The five-point plan is comprised of the following elements:
• An immediate ceasefire between Palestinian Authority terrorists and Israel
• Formation of a PA unity government that is capable of achieving international recognition
• An exchange of prisoners, including IDF Cpl Gilad Shalit (kidnapped by Hamas terrorists from Gaza on June 25th) as well as IDF soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev (kidnapped by Hizbullah terrorists from southern Lebanon on July 12th)
• Talks between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas
• An international peacekeeping mission in Gaza to monitor the ceasefire once an agreement is reached.
An Israeli official quoted by the AFP news service said that Israel was "appalled by such naivety." In addition, the source denied that Spain, France and Italy had coordinated their efforts, saying that Zaptero's statements differed from those of the French government.
The proposal will be presented at a meeting of the European Union in December, when Zapatero hopes to persuade Britain and Germany to throw their support behind the plan.
Meanwhile, the European Union condemned Israel's "disproportionate use of force and the economic siege laid on Gaza" on Thursday. The European Parliament passed, by a large majority, a proposal to send a multi-national force to Gaza to pressure Israel to "stop all its military operations" in the region.
The Spanish initiative calls for a ceasefire, an idea which the Foreign Ministry called naive. "We will certainly see if he manages to convince the Palestinians to stop rocket fire on Israel," said the Israeli official.
Foreign Minister Tzipy Livni said in response to the announcement that she told her Spanish counterpart that every new initiative must be coordinated with the Israeli government.
PA spokesman Nabil Rudineh announced Thursday evening that the terrorist-led government welcomed the initiative to bring international forces to the region.
Zapatero told reporters at a news conference following his meeting with French President Jacques Chirac in the town of Girona, near the Spanish border with France, that peace in the Middle East “means to a large extent peace on the international scene.”
Chirac agreed, saying that all three countries “have the same vision of problems and concerns over the Middle East, and particularly Palestine.” He added that the three nations “have the sensitivity, the same interests and the same morals,” which might be useful in “working out a solution to the Palestinian problem.”
Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi told reporters in Rome that his country fully supported the initiative. “I think the European countries present in the area have an obligation to look for a way to get out of this situation,” he said.
The five-point plan is comprised of the following elements:
• An immediate ceasefire between Palestinian Authority terrorists and Israel
• Formation of a PA unity government that is capable of achieving international recognition
• An exchange of prisoners, including IDF Cpl Gilad Shalit (kidnapped by Hamas terrorists from Gaza on June 25th) as well as IDF soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev (kidnapped by Hizbullah terrorists from southern Lebanon on July 12th)
• Talks between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas
• An international peacekeeping mission in Gaza to monitor the ceasefire once an agreement is reached.
An Israeli official quoted by the AFP news service said that Israel was "appalled by such naivety." In addition, the source denied that Spain, France and Italy had coordinated their efforts, saying that Zaptero's statements differed from those of the French government.
The proposal will be presented at a meeting of the European Union in December, when Zapatero hopes to persuade Britain and Germany to throw their support behind the plan.
Meanwhile, the European Union condemned Israel's "disproportionate use of force and the economic siege laid on Gaza" on Thursday. The European Parliament passed, by a large majority, a proposal to send a multi-national force to Gaza to pressure Israel to "stop all its military operations" in the region.
The Spanish initiative calls for a ceasefire, an idea which the Foreign Ministry called naive. "We will certainly see if he manages to convince the Palestinians to stop rocket fire on Israel," said the Israeli official.